Securities & Investment Company

Securities & Investment Company

Securities & Investment Company (SICO) was established in 1980 as one of Bahrain's earliest investment banks, operating under the chairmanship of Abdulla Mohammed Hassan Al-Zamil. It formed amid a wave of regional financial institution building, predating the large-scale diversification drives that later reshaped Gulf capital. The firm remains headquartered in Manama and is regulated by the Central Bank of Bahrain. The firm deploys capital across three main asset classes: real estate, private credit, and public equities within GCC markets. Its real estate activities have historically included direct property investments and structured real-estate lending across Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. On the public side, SICO operates a brokerage and asset management business offering discretionary portfolios and Gulf-focused mutual funds. Known investment activity includes participation in select regional pre-IPO placements and credit facilities for mid-market Bahraini corporates. SICO has maintained a lean operational profile, anchored by its Manama headquarters. In May 2023, the firm reported net profit of BHD 1.1 million for the first quarter, a recovery from a prior loss-making period, signaling stabilized positioning after regional market headwinds (per the firm's regulatory filings, 2023). Its adjacent activities include custody services and market-making on the Bahrain Bourse, making it part of the local capital-markets infrastructure as well as a principal investor. A structural differentiator is SICO's dual role as both principal investor and market intermediary. Unlike pure family offices or dedicated asset managers, it operates a regulated brokerage and custody business alongside its proprietary investment book. This hybrid architecture — common among older Bahraini investment houses — gives it deal flow through brokerage relationships while maintaining a direct balance-sheet exposure that most modern asset managers have separated.